Believe it! Humans can smell 1 trillion odours

From freshly baked pizza or popped popcorns in a cinema theatre to fresh sea breeze or wet paint at home, our nose can actually distinguish at least one trillion different odours. It has been said for decades that humans are capable of...

"Our analysis shows that the human capacity for discriminating smells is much larger than anyone anticipated,"

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The human nose can detect one trillion different odours, far more than we previously thought, say US scientists. Until now, the long-held belief was that we can sniff out about 10,000 smells. New estimates published in Science suggest the human nose outperforms the eye and the ear in terms of the number of stimuli it can detect. Researchers at the Rockefeller University say we...

What does your nose know? A lot more than you might expect. Scientists studying the breadth of people's sense of smell find that the human nose can discern far more than the 10,000 different odours long cited as the outer limit of a person's olfactory abilities. They concluded that the human nose can differentiate an almost infinite number of smells - more than a trillion -...

Andreas Keller in the lab surrounded by vials of odours he and his colleagues used to measure volunteers' ability to distinguish between scents. Photo: Reuters Washington: What does your nose know? A lot more than you might expect. Scientists studying the breadth of people's sense of smell said on Thursday the human nose can discern far more than the 10,000 different odours...

New research has found that humans are capable of differenciating between at least one trillion different odours and not a mere 10,000 as is popularly thought. Scientists from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) reached this estimate after concocting various smells in the lab and testing individuals' ability to recognize the differences. "Our analysis shows that the...

The human nose can distinguish at least 1 trillion different odours, millions more than previously estimated, U.S. researchers said Thursday. For decades, scientists accepted that humans could detect only 10,000 scents, putting the sense of smell well below the capabilities of sight and hearing. "Our analysis shows that the human capacity for discriminating smells is much...

Our noses may know more than we give them credit for. New calculations suggest that we should be able to tell apart at least a trillion different smells – far more than anyone expected from a sense organ often viewed as almost pitifully rudimentary. The acuity of our two main senses, vision and hearing, is easy to measure: psychologists know that we can distinguish a few...

A new study has challenged the thinking that we can distinguish between about 10,000 distinct odours, and its findings knock that figure out of the park. The research asked human volunteers to distinguish between mixtures of odours with varying numbers of shared components. “On the basis of the results of psychophysical testing, we calculated that humans can discriminate at...

Can humans really smell one trillion odours?

published:01 Apr 2014

Can humans really smell one trillio

Can humans really smell one trillion odours?

I explain and critique a recent paper from the journal Science. It's fun!
Humans Can Discriminate More than 1 Trillion Olfactory Stimuli - http://bit.ly/1mH8uJ9
Join me on the internet!
Twitter: http...

How Many Smells Can You Smell?

published:12 Jan 2015

How Many Smells Can You Smell?

How Many Smells Can You Smell?

How do we smell? Great! Thanks for asking!
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Humans Can Smell a Trillion Scents

published:21 Mar 2014

Humans Can Smell a Trillion Scents

Humans Can Smell a Trillion Scents

A team of researchers has determined that when it comes to estimating how good our sense of smell is, humans are just too hard on themselves.
A team of researchers has determined that when it comes ...

The Science Jerks News 17 - A Trillion Smells

published:24 Mar 2014

The Science Jerks News 17 - A Trill

The Science Jerks News 17 - A Trillion Smells

Chan and Ciaccio experiment with the new discovery that humans can distinguish between over a trillion different smells.
The Science Jerks News is hosted by Robert Chan (@999rpms) and Dave Ciaccio (@...

The odor detection threshold is the lowest concentration of a certain odor compound that is perceivable by the human sense of smell. The thresholds of a chemical compound is determined in part by its shape, polarity, partial charges and molecular mass. The olfactory mechanisms responsible for a compound's different detection threshold is not well understood, as such, these thresholds cannot yet be accurately predicted. Rather, they must be measured through extensive tests using human subjects in laboratory settings.

Optical isomers can have different detections thresholds since their conformations may cause them to be less perceivable for the human nose. It is only in recent years that such compounds were separated on gas chromatographs.

Odor threshold value (OTV) (also aroma threshold value (ATV), Flavor threshold) is defined as the most minimal concentration of a substance that can be detected by a human nose. Some substances can be detected when their concentration is only few milligrams per 1000 tonnes, which is less than a drop in an Olympic swimming pool. Odor threshold value can be expressed as a concentration in water or concentration in air.

Can humans really smell one trillion odours?

I explain and critique a recent paper from the journal Science. It's fun!
Humans Can Discriminate More than 1 Trillion Olfactory Stimuli - http://bit.ly/1mH8uJ9
Join me on the internet!
Twitter: https://twitter.com/georginacarvell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gcarvell
Some things I wrote: www.gcarvell.com

duration:8:30

published:01 Apr 2014

updated:01 Apr 2014

views:51

How Many Smells Can You Smell?

How do we smell? Great! Thanks for asking!
Subscribe to It’s Okay To Be Smart: http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub
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We walk through life led by our noses. Literally. Because they’re on the front of our faces. The sense of smell might be one of the oldest, but how does the science of smell work? How sensitive are our noses? Why are smell-related memories so vivid? How many different smells could we possibly smell? Find out in this week’s It’s Okay To Be Smart!
Check out this amazing essay on smell from Lewis Thomas (1980), it’s a beautiful piece of science writing: http://cplab.net/heap/on-smell/
Evolution of human olfactory receptor genes: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC218742/
Pseudogenes in olfactory system: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12644552
The nose as an emotional time machine: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/05/science/05angier.html?_r=2&
Smell memories are often the most vivid: http://aeon.co/magazine/psychology/why-is-food-so-potent-in-evoking-the-memories-of-childhood/
Sperm olfactory receptors: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16413109
How many smells can we smell?
https://neuroecology.wordpress.com/2014/11/04/how-many-smells-can-a-smelly-person-smell-1-trillion-or-10/
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/343/6177/1370
You and Your Senses, starring Jiminy Cricket: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kxcy6uMVH74
Have an idea for an episode or an amazing science question you want answered? Leave a comment below!
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Last week’s video:
Does my dog know what I’m thinking? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnMULQDHIjk
More videos:
Building Curiosity https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=__tPaFaPCHo
Why Are Some People Left-Handed? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPvMUpcxPSA
Why Did We Blow on NES Games? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gf9mtXnJfM
The Science of Game of Thrones - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utu-LpJn3Is
There Was No First Human - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdWLhXi24Mo
How The Elements Got Their Names - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtg9p6A6xnY

duration:4:34

published:12 Jan 2015

updated:12 Jan 2015

views:4761

Humans Can Smell a Trillion Scents

A team of researchers has determined that when it comes to estimating how good our sense of smell is, humans are just too hard on themselves.
A team of researchers has determined that when it comes to estimating how good our sense of smell is, humans are just too hard on themselves.
We give huge kudos to dogs, which have a reputation for possessing far superior olfactory abilities, but a recent study says ours is pretty good, too.
By researchers' estimates, people can differentiate between a trillion different aromas.
Conventional wisdom has historically placed the number at just 10 thousand, but the researchers point out that was just a guess and it was made back in the 1920s.
For years they've doubted that this was true, and say they've finally succeeded in proving it isn't.
Clearly, they didn't have people hang out in the lab and smell a trillion different things.
As humans smell by inhaling molecules, molecules are where they started.
They culled 128 varieties of molecules and combined them in mixtures using either 10, 20 or 30 in different concentrations that could theoretically represent trillions of odors.
They tried to stay away from familiar scents and ended up with unique, yet sometimes unpleasant, concoctions.
26 regular people were enlisted to start smelling, and, based on calculations and political pollster-like extrapolations, they determined on average, detection of a trillion aromas was, in fact, humanly possible.

1 Trillion Odors

Study: Human Nose Can Detect 1 TRILLION Scents

A new study out of Rockefeller University claims that the human nose can pick up on over 1 trillion different smells. Most of them are urine, probably.
Share this video: http://youtu.be/z6wlzesGvg4
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/human-nose-detect-trillion-smells-study-article-1.1729278
Also check out the man with a nose on his forehead: http://youtu.be/_uRWi1ap01o
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Host Twitter: Mackinley - http://www.twitter.com/Mackinley
New videos from Mackinley every weekday!

duration:1:03

published:21 Mar 2014

updated:21 Mar 2014

views:649

Where Does the Smell of Rain Come From?

I smell a science storm a-comin'!! Subscribe to It's Okay To Be Smart: http://bit.ly/iotbs_sub ↓ More info and sources below ↓ Follow on Twitter: http://twit...

The Science Jerks News 17 - A Trillion Smells

Chan and Ciaccio experiment with the new discovery that humans can distinguish between over a trillion different smells.
The Science Jerks News is hosted by Robert Chan (@999rpms) and Dave Ciaccio (@daveciaccio). Follow us on twitter (@TheScienceJerks). Like us on Facebook (Facebook.com/ScienceJerks). Check out our weekly podcast, 'The Science Jerks' featuring longer stories, comedy guests and a science trivia quiz you can play along with at home. Listen free on iTunes, Stitcher or at TheScienceJerks.com.

duration:1:28

published:24 Mar 2014

updated:24 Mar 2014

views:4

Is the California CAFR scandal for real?

Carl Herman is a Teacher, Harvard Graduate, and writer at Washingtonsblog.com. In 2012, Carl wrote a series of articles claiming that California's Comprehens...

Jar of Picked Human Skin...Does it smell?

We have featured this jar of picked human skin on our series "Guess What's on the Curator's Desk." It's time to find out if it smells! Watch museum director, Dr. Robert Hicks take a whiff...
Guess What's on the Curator's Desk--Picked Human Skin, Part 1:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=9C6CIOosWmk#t=30
Guess What's on the Curator's Desk--Picked Human Skin, Part 2:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrrEf0R9coI

duration:0:49

published:13 Sep 2013

updated:13 Sep 2013

views:1243

BIGFOOT UNCOVERED GEORGIA

Bigfoot in White County, Georgia. Can Sasquatch discern more smells than humans? It was discovered recently that humans can determine the difference between one trillion smells. Can Bigfoot top that?

duration:3:27

published:31 Mar 2014

updated:31 Mar 2014

views:258

The 10 Basic Categories of All Smells

Just as taste is generally thought to be made up of five basic flavor categories -- sweet, sour, bitter, salty, and umami, or savory, scientists now propose ...

Harry Reid Doesn't Like Smelly Tourists

Savvy: Five human special senses

We can see things, colors, and sceneries all at the same time because our eyes catch the sight of object and the nerves carry this information to the brain.
Smell is a human special sense that receive odor stimulus. The nerves in the nose receive the odor stimulus and transfer it to the brain for perception. The nose, which is equipped by olfactory nerves, is the special organ for smelling.
Taste is a human special sense which task is to receive flavor and palatability of food. The work of the sense of taste corresponds to the sense of smell.
Touch is one of the five special senses which task is to receive stimulus in the form of body contact with substances.
Hearing is a human special sense which task is to receive sound wave stimulus.

Burton High Fives - Competitions Start Tomorrow

Press Release: TUNE IN: Watch the Second Annual Burton High Fives snowboarding competition LIVE on on September 12 and 13 WHAT: The second annual Burton 'High Fives' presented by MINI snowboarding competition, is now underway at Cardrona Alpine Resort in Wanaka, New Zealand. A live webcast of the slopestyle and halfpipe competitions will be on with the slopestyle coverage... more